Retractile antenna mast assembly



Apr-i1 8, 1952 G. E. BADER RETRACTILE ANTENNA MAST ASSEMBLY "Filed Jan. 2'7, 1950 INVENTOR. 6 mm; E. .BHDEl-r HTTOFINEYS Patented Apr. 8, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE RETRACTILE ANTENNA MAST ASSEMBLY Gillis E. Bader, Bellville, Tex.

Application January 27, 1950, Serial No. 140,881

2 Claims.

' This invention relates to retractile antenna mast assemblies and more particularly to means for supporting a mast on a derrick structure and raising and lowering the mast and is a continuation in part of my application Serial'No. 93,137 filed May 13, 1949, for retractile antenna mast assembly.

It is among the objects of the present invention to provide an improved construction for pivotally connecting a tubular antenna mast to the upper end of a derrick structure for sliding, rotating and swinging movements of the mast relative to the derrick structure and to provide means associated with such improved construction for supporting the mast against bending or breaking while it is being erected on the derrick structure.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from a consideration of the following description and the appended claims in conjunction with the accompanying drawing wherein:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a completely erected antenna mast assembly illustrative of the invention;

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the assembly illustrated in Figure 1 at an intermediate stage in the process of erection;

Figure 3 is a side elevation of a fragmentary portion of the antenna mast illustrating means for connecting the mast to the upper end of a mast supporting derrick structure;

Figure 4 is a cross sectional view on the line 4-4 of Figure 3; and

Figure 5 is a cross sectional view on the line 5-5 of Figure 3.

With continued reference to the drawing, the mast assembly illustrated in Figure 1 comprises, in general, a braced derrick structure H3 supported in upright position on the ground by guy wires 1 I, an elongated mast [2 formed of tubular sections joined together in end to end relationship, an antenna 13 supported on the upper end of the mast l2, guy wires l4 and I5 supporting the mast l2 in upright position and means [5, particularly illustrated in Figures 3, 4 and 5, connecting the mast [2 intermediate its length to the upper end of the derrick structure ill for sliding, rotational and swinging movements of the mast relative to the derrick structure.

A fitting I! is provided on the upper end of the mast I2 for mounting the antenna 53 and adjacent this fitting there is provided a device l8 for connecting the upper ends of the guy wires l5 to the mast. The guy wires [4 are similarly connected to the mast below the device I8 by a device [9 and the guy wires II are connected to the upper end of the derrick structure It] by suitable means later to be described.

The mechanism for mounting the mast l2 on the upper end of the derrick structure Ill comprises an elongated, cylindrical sleeve 28 in which themast is slidably and rotatably received. A flat ring or collar 2| surrounds the sleeve 20 substantially at the mid-length location of the sleeve and has a close sliding fit with the sleeve. Two internally screw threaded sockets 22 and 23 are provided on the fiat ring 2! at diametrically opposite locations thereon and a bolt 24 having external screw threads at one end is threaded into the-socket 22 while a similar bolt 25 is threaded into the socket 23. The bores of the sockets open through the flat ring 2! so that the bolts can be threaded into the sockets until their inner ends engage the outer surface of the sleeve thereby locking the fiat ring against movement relative to the sleeve.

The two side members and 21 of the derrick structure H] are provided near their upper ends with recesses or holes through which the bolts Hand 25 extend and the bolt 25 is provided on its outer end opposite the socket 22 with a loop formation 28 to which the corresponding one of the guy wires H is connected while the bolt 25 is provided with a similar loop formation 29 for attachment of the remaining wire or wires of this group to the upper end of the derrick structure.

A third socket is provided on the flat ring 2! midway between the two sockets 22 and 23 and projects outwardly from this ring with its longitudinal center line perpendicularly intersecting the common longitudinal center line of the ring 2| and sleeve. This socket 39 is provided with an internally screw threaded bore and a rod 3|, preferably of tubular construction, is provided at one end with external screw threads and is threaded at such one end into the socket 38. At its opposite or outer end the rod 3| is provided with a deep, diametrically extending notch 32.

In erecting the mast assembly the derrick structure It is laid out flat on the ground and its bottom end pivotally connected to a suitable base structure 33 and the sleeve 29 with the flat ring 2! thereon is then placed between the upper ends of the side members 26 and 21' of the derrick structure. The bolts 24 and 25 are then in serted through the holes in the side members 26 and 27 and threaded into the sockets 22 and 23 until the sleeve is locked in the ring with the ring substantially at the mid-length location of the sleeve. The mast I2 is then inserted through the sleeve 29 beginning with the lower end of the mast and a suitable stop is provided reacting between the mast l2 and the sleeve 28 so that the mastcan be used to raise the upper end of the derrick structure until the derrick structure is brought to its upright position; The mast may comprise lengthsoi' metal tubing connected together in end to end relationship by internally screw threaded coupling collars and one of these collars may be used as the stop reacting between the mast I12 and. the sleeve 20 for raising the derrick structure; The guy wires II will have beenattached to the bolt loop formations 28 and 2.9 before the derrickstructure is raised and when the derrick structure is brought to its upright, substantially vertical position, the lower ends of these guy wires are connected to the ground to firmly support the derrick structure in its upright position. The antenna l3 may now be mounted on the upper end of the mast l2 with the upper end of the mast positioned adjacent the ground and after the antenna is mounted, it may be raised by pulling down on the mast at a location at or near the bottom end of the latter.

In my application Serial No. 93,137, referred to above, the antenna mounted on the upper end of the mast is raised by pulling down on a ground wire connected at one end to the bottom end of the mast. As the mast is a very long structure formed of sections of light tubin preferably aluminum tubing, secured together in end to end relationship and as the antenna I3 may be relatively heavy, it was found that this operation of raising the antenna had a tendency to bend and permanently distort the mast.

In accordance with the present invention, while the derrick structure I is still flat on the ground the ring 2| is mounted between the side members 26 and 27 of the derrick structure, in the manner described above, with the socket 30 extending upwardly. The rod 3| is then threaded into the socket 30 and one of the middle guy wires 15, connected at one end to the flange plate l8 by being looped through an aperture in the flange plate, as is clearly illustrated in Figure 3, is strung along the mast toward the lower end of the mast and placed in the notch 32 in the outer end of the rod 3 I. A staple 34 is provided on a coupling collar 35 near the bottom end of the mast l2 and the guy wire is run through this staple and over this rod and attached to the staple 34 at the opposite side of the rod from the device l8 serves as a tension member to reinforce the mast and maintain the mast against bending or permanent distortion. The portion of the guy wire beyond the staple 34 will dangle from the mast, as illustrated in Figure 2, and may be used to pull the lower end of the mast down after the antenna has been mounted on the upper end of the mast until the mast is brought to its operative upright position. After the mast 12 has been secured in upright position the guy wire is loosened from the staple 34 and its lower end is then connected to the ground in proper position together with the other guy wires [4 and I5, to support the mast in its upright or substantially vertical operative position.

After the mast has been brought to its upright position and before the guy wires l4 and 15 are connected to the ground, the mast l2 can be adjusted both vertically and rotationally to obtain the best reception.

The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiment is, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are, therefore, intended to be embraced therein.

What is claimed is:

1. In a retractile antenna mast assembly including a derrick structure, guy wires for holding said derrick structure in upright position, an elongated mast comprising tubular sections joined together in end to end relationship, a fitting on one end of said mast for mounting an antenna thereon, guy wires for guying said mast in upright position, and means on said mast adjacent said fitting by which said last mentioned guy wires are attached to said mast, a sleeve slidably and rotatably receiving said mast, a flat ring encircling said sleeve intermediate the length of the latter, a pair of internally screw threaded sockets secured to said ring at diametrically opposite locations thereon, a bolt threaded each at one end one into each of said sockets and engaging said sleeve to fix the latter in said ring, said derrick structure having in its upper end recesses receiving the bolts, a loop formation on the other end of said bolts by which said first mentioned guy wires are attached to said bolts, a rod secured at one end to said ring between said sockets and extending perpendicularly outwardly from said ring, said rod having in its outer end a recess receiving one of said last mentioned guy wires carried from said attachment means adjacent said fitting over the outer end of said rod and attached to said mast at a location spaced from the end of said sleeve opposite said attaching means for supporting said mast against bending when the mast is swung about the common axis of said bolts.

2. In a retractile antenna mast assembly including a derrick structure, guy wires for holding said derrick structure in an upright position, a mast, means on one end of said mast for mounting an antenna thereon, guy wires for guying said mast in an upright position, means attaching said last mentioned guy wires to said mast, a sleeve slidably and rotatably receiving said mast, and a ring member encircling said sleeve, socket means formed on said ring member at diametrically opposite locations thereon, bolts affixed each at one end one in each of said socket means and engaging said sleeve to fix the latter in said ring, said derrick structure having in its upper end recesses rotatably receiving the bolts, a loop formation on the other end of each of said bolts by which said first mentioned guy wires are attached to said bolts, a rod secured at one end to said ring and extending perpendicularly outwardly therefrom, said rod having a notch formed at its outer end receiving one of said last mentioned guy wires carried from said attachment means over the outer end of said rod and attached to said mast at a location spaced from the end of said sleeve opposite said attaching means for supporting the mast against bending when the mast is swung about the common axis of said bolts.

GILLIS E. BADER.

REFERENCES CITED- The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 275,689 Mitchell Apr. 10, 1883 411,204 Short Sept. 1'7, 1889 465,079 Walton Dec. 15,1891 799,220 Booz Sept. 12, 1905 1,963,014 Brown June 12,1934 

